Silicon Valley companies pledge to diversify their workforces

Intel, SAP, Lyft, Spotify and VMware are just some of the 30 Silicon Valley based companies that have signed a “Tech Inclusion Pledge” as a promise that they will promote diversity in their workplaces going forward.

Two years ago, the civil rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson pointed out the lack of diversity in the tech companies operating out of Silicon Valley. He went so far as to press a number of companies to release their data regarding the number of African Americans, Hispanics and women employed at their organisations.

Google and Intel both released their employee data which highlighted the fact that their workforces were predominately made up of white males. Both companies then decided to set specific goals to deal with their organisation's lack of diversity with Intel pledging to invest $300 million on diversity and inclusion and Google announcing a $150 million expenditure to help more women and minorities become a part of the tech industry.

This week before the global entrepreneurship summit in Silicon Valley, the companies sent a letter to US President Barack Obama in which they committed to implementing and publishing company specific goals in regard to hiring, retaining and advancing technology talent from a variety of backgrounds. They will also now publish data on the diversity at their organisations on an annual basis.

Diversity in the tech industry is not just a goal to strive towards but it will also help tech companies succeed according to a new report from Intel and Dalberg Global Development Advisors which studied the diversity data of almost 170 companies.

The report found that a correlation existed between more diverse workforces and higher market value, revenue and profits. An estimated additional $470 to $570 billion in new value could be added to the US tech industry as a result of a more diverse workforce according to the report.Image Credit: Kzenon / Shutterstock